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SALT LAKE CITY -- The same meal you ate for dinner Tuesday night will probably cost you more a month from now. Food prices are rising.
I buy a lot of pork now. It wasn't a meat that I usually get, but because it's a cheaper meat, now I buy it.
–Rebecca Franco, Utah shopper
#franco_q
"The price of food, it's gone up a lot," Rebecca Franco told KSL News as she rolled through the grocery store isles with a toddler in tow.
She's noticed it, and we'll all see it wherever we shop for food.
"I've seen the price of ... especially ground beef has gone up," Franco said. "The price of bread has gone up. It's real expensive."
Her favorite bread for her family is up $3, and the price of beef rewrote her shopping list.
"I buy a lot of pork now," Franco said. "It wasn't a meat that I usually get, but because it's a cheaper meat, now I buy it."
It's a situation that affects a lot more than just our wallets. The commodities that go into all of our foods -- wheat, corn, corn syrup, rice and sugar -- are all rising fast.
Food prices today also affect political stability in some parts of the world. World food prices reached a historic peak this month. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization says the January food price index hit the highest level since it started tracking food prices 20 years ago.
Local shoppers like Sophie Enquist feel it."I definitely shop the sales for meat and bread," Enquist said.
A monthly Deseret News cost comparison shows the average price of bread is $2.72 -- up 39 percent in just one month. The price of frozen corn is up 15.6 percent, for bananas it's up 5.5 percent, and the price of treats is up 3.8 percent.
Wheat prices have doubled in six months. A drought in China will push those prices higher. Add global demand for rice, corn, and sugar, and food volatility rises.
The World Food Program says that's partly what drives the civil protest like we've seen in Egypt and elsewhere. Rising fuel prices will feed the problem too, so shoppers do what they can.
"For now, I just look for the sale prices," Enquist said. "Mostly because if you are going to pay full price, it really has shot up quite a bit."
Food inflation may not hit all items in all stores right away, but those who track global food prices say it will likely strain people worldwide through the year.
One bright spot: the Deseret News local cost comparison shows ice cream is down 23 percent -- so enjoy that while it lasts.
E-mail: jboal@ksl.com
